laundry

noun

laun·​dry ˈlȯn-drē 

ˈlän-

plural laundries

1

a

: a room for doing the family wash

b

: a commercial laundering establishment

2

: clothes or linens that have been or are to be laundered

Examples of laundry in a Sentence

There's a pile of dirty laundry in the laundry basket.

The patients' sheets are sent regularly to the hospital laundry.

Recent Examples on the Web

Consider if each of the 40 million people in the Great Lakes watershed did their laundry once every two weeks. — Michael Hawthorne, Chicago Tribune, 23 Aug. 2026

Cashew is also an emotional support kitten for his dog sister, who doesn't like thunder, the laundry or fireworks. — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026

Here’s how to best keep your laundry moving while making sure your machine is functioning at its best. — Mary Catherine McAnnally Scott, Southern Living, 21 Aug. 2026

Pigs grunt and chickens squawk in the mist, laundry is hung out on the line, and air conditioning is non-existent. — Jennifer Leigh Parker, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing laundry

• air one's dirty laundry
• dirty laundry
• do the/one's laundry
• laundry list
• load of laundry

Kids Definition

laundry

noun

laun·​dry ˈlȯn-drē 

ˈlän-

plural laundries

1

: clothes or linens that have been or are to be laundered

2

: a place where laundering is done

Etymology

from an obsolete word launder (noun) "one who washes clothes," derived from early French lavandier (or lavandiere) "a man (or woman) who washes clothes," from Latin lavandus "needing to be washed," from lavare "to wash" — related to lavatory, lavish, lotion